A healthy, toned body is just the start of the physical transformation you expect by practicing reformer Pilates regularly. Pilates reformer classes at Five Starr Pilates & Fitness is a complete workout for both the body and the mind and has the potential to increase fat loss, develop muscle tone, and build strength and flexibility, leading to a more toned physique and, most importantly, improved overall well-being.
How many times a week should you do Reformer Pilates Classes? While there’s no magic number of classes you should take each week, the number of times you practice depends on what kind of results you want to see.
To quote Joseph Pilates, “In 10 sessions you will feel better, in 20 you will look better, and in 30 you will have a whole new body.” Generally speaking, like most fitness workouts, practicing 3-4 classes per week is a good guideline to stick by. Scheduling classes ahead of time at small boutique studios like Five Starr Pilates & Fitness helps create accountability and consistency, which we all need!
Here are the ways reformer classes can change your body and improve your overall well-being:
Builds Muscle
Most Pilates reformer classes have exercises that focus on building up the deepest layer of muscle, which can develop and hone long, lean muscles that will help create a stronger inner and outer frame. This has a dramatic impact on your overall body composition.
Many people who seek to lose weight don’t necessarily want the number on the scale to be smaller, but rather to be able to have more muscle mass and less body fat. Whether or not the number on the scale changes then becomes irrelevant, as your body composition has changed and you are looking leaner and more toned. Reformer Pilates classes achieve this really well as it makes use of both bodyweight training and actual weight training, which sculpts your body and allows you to have a better muscle-to-fat ratio.
The Pilates exercises we practice on the reformer machine use resistance to induce muscular contraction. By stretching the muscle, the muscle fibers lengthen and re-align, which is an amazing way to shape the body, giving our students a tighter and leaner physique.
Strengthens Your Core
During Pilates reformer classes at Five Starr Pilates & Fitness, we work ALL of your abdominal muscles, including the six-pack rectus abdominis, the waist-defining obliques, and the deep transverse abdominis, which is the lower part of your abdominals often missed in traditional ab workouts.
Many movements and postures we do during class require you to hold your core in place while moving your limbs in different directions. This challenges your body with balance and stability and strengthens your core over time allowing your abdominals to become more defined.
In a study conducted by Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, they found that after completing 36 weeks of Pilates training, women strengthened their abdominals by an average of 21%, helping their stomachs look a lot more defined.
Breath Work
The breath work we do during reformer Pilates classes fuels the metabolic system, which promotes increased fat burning and can result in weight loss. Daily practice will also promote hormonal balance, thus making it easier for you to maintain a healthy body weight and shape.
Getting Started with Pilates Reformer Classes
There are many reasons why people incorporate Pilates reformer classes into their fitness regime. The benefits are endless! However just to mention a few, you can expect to see include improved balance and posture, increased muscle strength and tone, better blood circulation and breathing, improved stabilization of your spine, increased body awareness, as well as better mental health, cardiovascular fitness, stress management and ability to relax.
Are you ready to experience these benefits for yourself? Check out our new client special to get started.
